The Preakness Stakes is widely known as the second leg of the Triple Crown and few connect the event with the durable star of the late 1800s who was named for a New Jersey township. In 1870, he won a stakes on opening day of Pimlico Race Course's inaugural meeting and was still campaigning when the track's signature event was rebranded three years later. The tradition of honoring the very best continues today, often after a marquee winner retires. Such is the case with Churchill Downs' Wise Dan Stakes, formerly known as the Firecracker for its spot on the calendar around the July 4 holiday.

This month's Lost and Found highlights some “lost” meanings of well-known stakes “found” on the summer schedule. The sampling is arranged in chronological order.

Matchmaker Stakes (July 17 at Monmouth Park) This fixture was conceived with an unusual incentive to attract the best fillies and mares. In addition to the financial reward, the prize for the top three finishers came with breeding options to premiere stallions. The original edition was held in 1967 at the now-idle Atlantic City Race Course. As sponsorships gained traction in the 1990s, Kentucky's leading stud operations began adding their brand to the title in addition to seasons to their stallions. Known as the WinStar Matchmaker since 2014, the 2021 renewal offered matings to Audible, Global Campaign and Tom's d'Etat.

Molly Pitcher Stakes (July 17 at Monmouth Park) Whether Molly Pitcher was a real person is a subject of debate, but the general consensus or legend is that she was a woman who carried water to troops at the Battle of Monmouth during the American Revolutionary War in 1778. The modern-day Molly Pitcher, first held in 1946, is undeniably a race that has attracted countless champion fillies and mares to the Jersey Shore track.

Jim Dandy (July 31 at Saratoga) The naming origin sometimes gets lost in translation for this test that is synonymous as the prep for the Travers Stakes, the Saratoga season's headliner. The race is a nod to the Thoroughbred who won the inaugural Travers in 1930 in a stunning upset over Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox. The surprise was one of the many that resulted in the track being dubbed “the graveyard of favorites” that has morphed into “the graveyard of champions.” Jim Dandy never came close to duplicating his best when it mattered the most. In his 141 starts, he produced just seven victories. By the stallion Jim Gaffney, Jim Dandy's label most likely reflected the definition for something of superior quality, a term that may have been inspired by a minstrel song of the mid 1800s.

Yellow Ribbon Handicap (August 7 at Del Mar) In racetracker slang, “get tied on” for this explanation of a pretty name with a pretty convoluted background. For starters, the summer edition is the rebranded Palomar Handicap while the first incarnation at Santa Anita is now the Rodeo Drive. The original was first held in 1977 during Santa Anita's autumn meeting when the Oak Tree Racing Association traditionally leased the facility. A popular song of the era was “Tie a Yellow Ribbon (Round the Old Oak Tree)” and somehow the wording grew into a good idea for a race. The varied symbolism and history of yellow ribbons includes awareness of the military although the hit song apparently is about a freed prisoner and his girlfriend.

Best Pal Stakes (August 7 at Del Mar) In short, the race for 2-year-olds recognizes the California-bred gelding but the story goes deeper. Best Pal was one of the most popular horses of his time thanks in part to his folksy name, West Coast roots and consistency during 47 races spread over seven seasons. His first of 12 graded wins came at Del Mar at age two in the Balboa Stakes which reflected area locations honoring the Spanish explorer. Best Pal retired in early 1996 and later that year the Balboa became the Best Pal. His 47-18-11-4 and $5,668,245 record includes Grade 1 victories in the Santa Anita, Charles H. Strub and Oaklawn Handicaps, Hollywood Gold Cup, and Hollywood Futurity and a runner-up effort in the 1991 Kentucky Derby.

A homebred of the revered Golden Eagle Farm of John and Betty Mabee, Best Pal returned to his birthplace but was less than thrilled with a life of too much leisure. He became a stable pony to accompany young horses to the track at Golden Eagle's training division. He died of an apparent heart attack at age ten and was buried on the property.

Beverly D. Stakes (August 14 at Arlington Park) The race for fillies and mares was designed in 1987 as the counterpart to the track's marquee Arlington Million that is run on the same day. The event honors the late wife of Richard Duchossois, whose name is forever linked with transforming Arlington Park into a spectacular setting for world-class racing. This year the Million will be contested as the Mister D. with a purse of $600,000. The Secretariat Stakes, the track's signature test for 3-year-olds, has been rechristened the Bruce D. to commemorate the couple's son who died in 2014.

Alabama Stakes (August 21 at Saratoga) Since 1872 some of the nation's finest fillies have been associated with Alabama which can be a head scratcher when glancing at headlines. The stakes refers to the home state of William Cottrell, a prominent owner-breeder of the era, who declined to have a race named for himself.

Singspiel Stakes (August 21 at Woodbine) First held in 2005, this race pays homage to the remarkably consistent international runner whose only two North American starts were at Woodbine. After winning the Canadian International at the Toronto track, the Irish-bred Singspiel was runner-up in the Breeders' Cup Turf to earn the 1996 Eclipse Award as champion grass horse. In his 20-race career, Singspiel was first or second on 17 occasions and banked just shy of $6 million. His triumphs include the 1997 Dubai World Cup. That triumph is commemorated with a race in his name that is contested early each year at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai. After a productive stud career in England, Singspiel was euthanized in 2010 following complications of laminitis. By definition, Singspiel is a German opera with spoken dialogue. He is a son of In the Wings (GB) which is a theatrical term for a player waiting to go on stage.

Riskaverse Stakes (August 26 at Saratoga) This lyrical label sounds racehorsey, but with a hyphen after “risk” the term relates to investors reluctant to take certain gambles. A newbie on the calendar with an inaugural running in 2009, the 3-year-old filly feature is named for the mare who earned more than $2 million before closing her five-season campaign in 2005. Her record includes consecutive victories in the G1 Flower Bowl Invitational Stakes at Belmont Park.

Ballerina Stakes (August 28 at Saratoga) First run in 1979, the label easily conjures up images of athletic and elegant dancers so one might not consider an equine version. However, the name is a nod to the standout filly of the 1950s who won New York's inaugural Maskette Handicap (now the Go for Wand).

Travers Stakes (August 28 at Saratoga) Arguably the most famous race of summer, the “The Midsummer Derby” is revered for highlighting returnees from the Triple Crown trail and the late bloomers getting into stride and for memorable victories and defeats. Dating back to 1864, the showcase honors Saratoga Race Course co-founder William R. Travers, who won the inaugural running with his horse Kentucky.

The post Lost And Found Presented By LuibriSYN HA: The Stories Behind The Top Summer Stakes Races appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

And maybe it was just the heat of the moment, but it seemed in the winner's circle afterward that seeing the 4-year-old daughter of Karakontie bursting between horses at the top of the stretch in the $200,000, 1 1/16-mile Grade 2 event and proceeding resolutely to a 1 ¼-length victory, topped the previous five here for the 63-year-old Stidham.

“I always, always love coming back to Del Mar,” Stidham, 63, said. “I was here all through the 1980s and it's almost like coming home. It's a great feeling. Part of my family – my daughter from college and my mother – are here and it's just a fantastic feeling.”

Stidham trained Princess Grace's mother, Masquerade, and said that the two were similarly tenacious, “always digging in and trying to win every time out.” Princess Grace, he said, was more talented – as evidenced by five wins and a second in six career starts over six different racetracks. “She should be undefeated, the one loss was just unlucky,” Stidham said.

Based in New Orleans, Stidham campaigns horses extensively in the Midwest and East, but has had success shipping here for stakes events over the last seven years.

In 2014, he won the San Clemente Stakes and the Sandy Blue with Istanford. He took back-to-back runnings of the Jimmy Durante during the fall meeting in 2018 and 2019 with Elsa and Alms, respectively. Pixelate's victory in last year's Del Mar Derby made it three straight years of at least one Del Mar stakes victory for Stidham, a streak that Princess Grace extended.

“I have to say, one of the reasons I'm here is David Jerkens, the racing secretary,” Stidham said. “He's constantly calling me and wanting me to bring a string out – which I did a few years ago – and keeping me updated on races. He does a great job, and I want to give him credit for being part of the reason I came.”

Princess Grace exited the Yellow Ribbon in fine fettle. Her next assignment is undetermined.

“I haven't looked past (the Yellow Ribbon),” Stidham said. “This was going to be her test to step up to another league and she obviously passed the test really well.”

The post Stidham Celebrates Another Stakes Win At Del Mar appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

The pair of offerings at the seaside track in Del Mar, Calif., were both Grade 2 events and both offered $200,000 purses. The Best Pal – being run for the 51st time – saw Pappacap maneuver like an old pro in only his second start in the juvenile headliner as he waited on rider Joe Bravo's signal, then zoomed to the front turning for home and went on to tally by 4 3/4 lengths. He ran the six furlongs in 1:11.66.

In the Yellow Ribbon – on the turf at 1 1/16 miles and being offered for its 69th edition – jockey Kent Desormeaux saw a hole nearing the quarter pole and asked the 4-year-old filly Princess Grace to go for it. She did readily and pulled clear in the lane to finish 1 1/4 lengths to the good at the end of the filly/mare feature. The winner covered the distance in a snappy 1:40.84.

Pappacap, a bay colt by champion Gun Runner bred by his owners, had captured his debut in a straight maiden race at Gulfstream Park in Florida on May 14.  Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse shipped him west for the Best Pal, perhaps looking ahead to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, which will be run at Del Mar on November 5.

Princess Grace, a homebred daughter of the Japanese stallion Karakontie, was winning her fifth race in her sixth start (she was second in her lone loss) and accomplishing it at her sixth different racetrack. The well-traveled filly is trained by Michael Stidham.

Pappacap picked up a check for $120,000 with his victory, pushing his bankroll to $158,000.  Princess Grace also earned $120,000 for her bit of handiwork and now shows winnings of $440,460.

Lovingier, Fasihuddin or Navarro's Finneus checked in second in the Best Pal, while Gary Barber's Bet On Mookie was third. Pappacap paid $6.60, $3.40 and $2.60 across the board. In the Yellow Ribbon, LNJ Foxwoods' Dogtag ran second and Slam Dunk Racing, Stable Currency and Branham's Maxim Rate was third. Princess Grace paid $9.20, $5.00 and $3.40.  Dogtag returned $4.80 and $3.20, while Maxim Rate paid $3.00.

Six horses ran in the Best Pal, while nine competed in the Yellow Ribbon.

Pappacap draws off to win the Best Pal by 4 3/4 lengths under Joe Bravo

The track's Pick 6 Single Ticket Jackpot Wager continued elusive for gamblers and grew its jackpot again for the 11th straight day. The carryover into Sunday's 10-race card will now be $982,985.

First post Sunday is 2 p.m.

Post-race quotes – Yellow Ribbon:

KENT DESORMEAUX (Princess Grace, winner) – “Michael (trainer Stidham) told me one thing before the race that I used to advantage today: He said 'She's brave.' When that hole opened turning for home, I sent her through and she went right on with it. She was a bit keen going into the first turn, but on the backside she was just all floppy ears and off the bit; taking it easy. I clucked to her at the three (eighths) and from there she just carried me home. Nice win on a nice filly.”

MIKE STIDHAM (Princess Grace, winner) – “I will tell you this: this filly is tenacious and one of the most hard-trying fillies I've ever trained. I trained her mother and she was just like that – not quite as talented, but always digging in and trying to win every time out. This little filly has been at six different racetracks and she should be undefeated, the one loss was just unlucky. I don't know what's next, I haven't looked past this race. This was going to be her test to step up to another league and she obviously passed the test really well.”

FRACTIONS:  :23.06  :46.61  1:10.46  1:34.89  1:40.84

The stakes win was the first of the meet for rider Desormeaux but his fourth in the Yellow Ribbon. He now has 84 stakes wins at Del Mar, ninth best among all riders.

The stakes win was the first of the meet for trainer Stidham and his first in the Yellow Ribbon. He now has six stakes wins at Del Mar.

The winning owners are Susan and John Moore from Far Hills, N.J.

A stakes doubleheader saw a young colt begin to bloom and an impressive filly continue to shine Saturday afternoon at Del Mar as Rustlewood Farm's Pappacap scored smartly in the Best Pal Stakes and Susan and John Moore's Princess Grace found a hole turning for home and ran away from rivals in the Yellow Ribbon Handicap.

The pair of offerings were both Grade II events and both offered $200,000 purses. The Best Pal – being run for the 51st time – saw Pappacap maneuver like an old pro in only his second start in the juvenile headliner as he waited on rider Joe Bravo's signal, then zoomed to the front turning for home and went on to tally by four and three-quarter lengths. He ran the six furlongs in 1:11.66.

In the Yellow Ribbon – on the turf at a mile and one sixteenth and being offered for its 69th edition – jockey Kent Desormeaux saw a hole nearing the quarter pole and asked the 4-year-old filly Princess Grace to go for it. She did readily and pulled clear in the lane to finish a length and a quarter to the good at the end of the filly/mare feature. The winner covered the distance in a snappy 1:40.84.

Pappacap, a bay colt by champion Gun Runner bred by his owners, had captured his debut in a straight maiden race at Gulfstream Park in Florida on May 14.  Hall of Fame trainer Mark Casse shipped him west for the Best Pal, perhaps looking ahead to the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, which will be run at Del Mar on November 5.

Princess Grace, a homebred daughter of the Japanese stallion Karakontie, was winner her fifth race in her sixth start (she was second in her lone loss) and accomplishing it at her sixth different racetrack. The well-traveled filly is trained by Michael Stidham.

Pappacap picked up a check for $120,000 with his victory, pushing his bankroll to $158,000.  Princess Grace also earned $120,000 for her bit of handiwork and now shows winnings of $440,460.

Lovingier, Fasihuddin or Navarro's Finneus checked in second in the Best Pal, while Gary Barber's Bet On Mookie was third. Pappacap paid $6.60, $3.40 and $2.60 across the board. In the Yellow Ribbon, LNJ Foxwoods' Dogtag ran second and Slam Dunk Racing, Stable Currency and Branham's Maxim Rate was third. Princess Grace paid $9.20, $5.00 and $3.40.  Dogtag returned $4.80 and $3.20, while Maxim Rate paid $3.00.

Six horses ran in the Best Pal, while nine competed in the Yellow Ribbon.

The track's Pick Six Single Ticket Jackpot Wager continued to be too tough to take down for gamblers and grew its jackpot again for the 11th straight day. The carryover into Sunday's 10-race card will now be $982,985.

First post Sunday is 2 p.m.

Post-race quotes

Yellow Ribbon

KENT DESORMEAUX (Princess Grace, winner) – “Michael (trainer Stidham) told me one thing before the race that I used to advantage today: He said 'She's brave.' When that hole opened turning for home, I sent her through and she went right on with it. She was a bit keen going into the first turn, but on the backside she was just all floppy ears and off the bit; taking it easy. I clucked to her at the three (eighths) and from there she just carried me home. Nice win on a nice filly.”

MIKE STIDHAM (Princess Grace, winner) – “I will tell you this: this filly is tenacious and one of the most hard-trying fillies I've ever trained. I trained her mother and she was just like that – not quite as talented, but always digging in and trying to win every time out. This little filly has been at six different racetracks and she should be undefeated, the one loss was just unlucky. I don't know what's next, I haven't looked past this race. This was going to be her test to step up to another league and she obviously passed the test really well.”

FRACTIONS:  :23.06  :46.61  1:10.46  1:34.89  1:40.84

The stakes win was the first of the meet for rider Desormeaux but his fourth in the Yellow Ribbon. He now has 84 stakes wins at Del Mar, ninth best among all riders.

The stakes win was the first of the meet for trainer Stidham and his first in the Yellow Ribbon. He now has six stakes wins at Del Mar.

The winning owners are Susan and John Moore from Far Hills, NJ

Best Pal

JOE BRAVO (Pappacap, winner) – “I was glad to see how well he settled in behind those two up front. His race in Florida, he just was pure speed. You don't know if that's the way they like to go. But he showed another dimension today. Mark Casse sends them out ready.”

ALLEN HARDY-ZUKOWSKI, assistant to Mark Casse (Pappacap, winner) – “Joe (Bravo) gave him such a great ride coming out of the gate. He seemed loaded and when Joe asked in the stretch he responded. I was glad to see that, especially coming off a layoff. It was great.”

FRACTIONS:  :22.11  :45.79  :58.61  1:11.66

The stakes win was the second of the meet for rider Bravo, but his first in the Best Pal. He now has four stakes wins at Del Mar.

The stakes win was the first of the meet for trainer Casse and his second in the Best Pal (Skyway, 2014). He now has nine stakes wins at Del Mar.

The winning owners are Rustlewood Farm of George and Karen Russell of Reddick, Fla.

The post Eastern Invaders Take Best Pal, Yellow Ribbon At Del Mar appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Joyce is this week's guest handicapper in the Beat Ray Beach Boss competition, joining host and racing analyst Michelle Yu to look at Saturday's Grade 2 Yellow Ribbon Handicap at the seaside track near San Diego, Calif. It's a very competitive race from top to bottom.

Yu has been red-hot in her analysis, schooling me and Nick Luck in selecting Dr. Schivel last week in the G1 Bing Crosby. It may be good news for me (or bad news for her) that we both agree that Michael Stidham-trained Princess Grace is poised for a minor upset in the Yellow Ribbon after winning her seasonal debut recently at Parx Racing in Pennsylvania.

With Joyce also putting his mythical $100 to win on Princess Grace, we're all going to be victorious or go down on the same sinking ship.

It's not too late to sign up for the Beach Boss competition, where the player with the largest mythical bankroll at the end of the current Del Mar meeting will win two VIP tickets for this year's Breeders' Cup world championships at Del Mar.

For more information or to sign up, click here. Watch our analysis of the Yellow Ribbon below.

The post Beat Ray At Del Mar: Royalty In The Yellow Ribbon? appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Seven juveniles will lock horns in this 51st edition of the Best Pal over six furlong that goes as the ninth race on an 11-race program. Then 10 older fillies and mares will go 1 1/16 miles on the lawn in the 69th running of the Yellow Ribbon, which goes as race 10.

The likely favorite in the juvenile race is the eastern shipper Pappacap, a Gun Runner colt owned by Rustlewood Farm and trained by newly minted Hall of Famer Mark Casse. The bay homebred was a smart winner of his lone start on May 14 at Gulfstream Park in Florida and has been in steady training since then. Newcomer Joe Bravo gets the call.

Another promising runner in the lineup is Gary Barber's Bet On Mookie, a son of the Lion Heart stallion Uncaptured who has been to the post twice and shows a win and a second for his efforts. His tally came at Santa Anita on June 11 when he simply outran his field in a straight maiden affair to score by five and a quarter lengths. Trainer Peter Miller has given the assignment of Bet On Mookie to Abel Cedillo.

In the Yellow Ribbon the competition runs deep. Among the distaffers who rate more than a casual look in the turfer are Slam Dunk Racing Stable and Currency's Maxim Rate, LNJ Foxwoods' Dogtag, Agave Racing Stable and Medallion Racing's Charmaine's Mia.  Also in the mix is last year's Yellow Ribbon winner – Calvin Nguyen's Bodhicitta.

In fact, all 10 runners in the lineup are stakes winners.

Here are the fields for the two stakes from the rail out with riders and morning line odds:

Best Pal —  Bet On Mookie (5/2); Chapman or Tsumimoto's Our Empire (Tyler Baze, 20-1); Pappacap (8/5); Lovingier, Fasihuddin or Navarro's Finneus (Umberto Rispoli, 3-1); Lovingier, Beckerle or Carrillo's Thirsty Always (apprentice Cesar Ortega, 7/2); Peter Redekop's Aquitania Arrival (Juan Hernandez, 4-1), and Opas or Sinatra's Olympic Legend (Jose Valdivia, Jr., 10-1).

Yellow Ribbon – Bodhicitta (Trevor McCarthy, 6-1); Little Red Feather Racing or Sterling's Raymundos Secret (Tiago Pereira, 6-1); Charmaine's Mia (Joe Bravo, 4-1); Dogtag (Rispoli, 4-1); El Tata Stables' Brooke (Kyle Frey, 12-1); Tommy Town Thoroughbreds' Keeper Ofthe Stars (Cedillo, 12-1); George and Martha Schwary Racing's Ippodamia's Girl (Geovanni Franco, 12-1); Susan and John Moore's Princess Grace (Kent Desormeaux, 8-1); Maxim Rate (Hernandez, 7/2), and Gary Barber's Laura's Light (Valdivia, Jr., 15-1).

The post Del Mar: Juveniles Clash In Best Pal; Quality Runs Deep In Yellow Ribbon Field appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

The British-bred daughter of Showcasing packed 120 pounds and got a picture-perfect ride from Flavien Prat and caught DRJ Racing, Kenney or Strauss' Tonahutu just in the shadow of the wire. Finishing third was Agave Racing Stable's Harmless.

Race favorite Beau Recall put in only a mild late bid and finished fifth beaten just under two lengths in the seven-horse lineup.

The tally was the eighth stakes score in just 12 racing days for rider Prat, who now has 21 firsts at the session, second best among all riders to Umberto Rispoli, who won four races on the afternoon to forge to the top with 22 scores.

“I had a good post (#2) today, so I was able to get right on the fence and save ground,” said Prat. “I knew they were going slow, but my filly has a good turn of foot and we got it done.”

The 4-year-old Bodhicitta paid $11.20, $5.40 and $4.00 across the board and earned a winner's share of $90,000 from the Yellow Ribbon purse of $151,000. She now has amassed $265,808 in winnings with her fourth stateside score and initial stakes victory.

This was the 68th edition of the Yellow Ribbon for fillies and mares, aged 3 and up, and the winner covered the mile and one-sixteenth distance on the Del Mar turf course in 1:42.83.

“The race went about like I thought it would, I didn't see much speed in the race,” said Baltas. “She has more tactical speed than some of the horses, like Beau Recall and others who come from the back. He (Flavien Prat) saved a lot of ground and we needed all of it. When he won with her awhile back, he said 'This is my next (multiple-stakes winner) Vasilika'.  It means a lot because he's ridden a lot of good horses. We may go here in the Mabee ($150,000, Grade 2 John C. Mabee Stakes, September 5).”

The post Bodhicitta, Prat Nose Out Tonahutu In Yellow Ribbon At Del Mar appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

His father was good friends with Eduardo Inda, the right-hand man for Hall of Fame trainer Ron McAnally and an integral part of the team that campaigned John Henry to the Hall of Fame as well.

“So I was able to be around John Henry quite a bit,” Cosato said. “I've got pictures with me and John Henry before and after he won the Santa Anita Handicap in 1982. John Henry was my lifelong favorite – until Beau Recall came along. For her to be at that level, in my mind, speaks volumes.”

Beau Recall, a 6-year-old Irish-bred mare, is the defending champion in Saturday's $150,000, Grade II Yellow Ribbon Handicap at Del Mar, a 1 1/16-mile turf test for older fillies and mares which will be run for the 68th time.

“It was a lengthy inquiry for something I didn't think merited being brought up in the first place,” Cosato recalled. “But in the end, the stewards' decision was the one we were hoping for.”

The Yellow Ribbon was one of three victories and three runner-up efforts in a six-race 2019 campaign for Beau Recall that accounted for $605,600 of her `more than $1.1 million in career earnings. The Yellow Ribbon was her second Grade II victory of the year, coming three months after a 10-1 upset in the Distaff Turf Mile, which gave Cosato and partners the thrill and prestige of going to the winner's circle before 150,729 spectators at Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby Day.

Cosato doesn't favor one over the other. He savors both.

“Any time you win one of those big races it's just a complete blessing,” Cosato, who grew up in Temple City and now lives in Sierra Madre, said. “Nothing beats winning at home, and I'm a Californian who has been coming to Del Mar since I was a kid.”

Beau Recall has raced twice in 2020. She finished ninth of 14, albeit beaten only 2 ¼ lengths, in the Mint Julep at Churchill Downs on May 30 and second in the Grade I Just a Game Stakes at Belmont Park on June 27.

“Her comeback race (Mint Julep) turned out to be nothing more than a workout,” Cosato said. “She never had room to run, never got to unleash the late kick that makes her so good.”

In the Just a Game, Beau Recall's late charge came up three lengths short against front-running Newspaperofrecord but a half length ahead of Uni, winner of the 2018 Matriarch Stakes at Del Mar and an Eclipse Award as the top female turf runner last year.

Beau Recall prevailed over five rivals, among them multiple stakes-winning Vasilika, in the 2019 Yellow Ribbon. There are seven others entered Saturday, among them Jolie Olimpica, winner of two graded turf sprints at Santa Anita this year and Keeper Ofthe Stars, who took the Grade I Gamely in May.

Beau Recall may carry the colors of Slam Dunk – a name Cosato chose because of the many friends/clients he has with NBA or college basketball backgrounds – but a victory Saturday is nowhere near such a high percentage opportunity.

“It's a tough race,” Cosato conceded. “We're trying to get her a Grade I win, but for that at a mile, you'd almost have to run against the boys. Timing-wise, the Yellow Ribbon is right and we're hoping it works out for her again.”

The field from the rail: Summering (Drayden Van Dyke, 12-1); Bodhicitta (Flavien Prat, 6-1); Tonahutu (Victor Espinoza, 15-1); Lady Prancelot (Juan Hernandez, 5-1); Harmless (Ricardo Gonzalez, 15-1); Keeper Ofthe Stars (Abel Cedillo, 7-2); Beau Recall (Umberto Rispoli, 3-1), and Jolie Olimpica (Mike Smith, 5-2).

The post ‘Timing’ Is Right For Beau Recall To Repeat In Yellow Ribbon Handicap appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

The now 6-year-old mare by the Irish stallion Sir Prancealot brings a record of seven wins and eight seconds from 27 starts to the mile and one-sixteenth grass test, as well as a bankroll that reads $1,101,512. Trainer Brad Cox has shipped his well-traveled charge in from New York to defend her title and has assigned Umberto Rispoli to ride.

In all, eight runners have been entered for the 68th edition of the Yellow Ribbon, but one of them – Fox Hill Farms' Jolie Olimpica – won't make the fray. Trainer Richard Mandella told racing officials that he'll wait for another day to bring out his stakes winning filly.

Glen Hill Farm's Summering (Drayden Van Dyke, 118, 12-1); Calvin Nguyen's Bodhicitta (Flavien Prat, 120, 6-1); DRJ Racing, Kenney or Strauss' Tonahutu (Victor Espinoza, 15-1); Iavarone, McClanahan or Arntz, et al's Lady Prancealot (Juan Hernandez, 121, 5-1); Agave Racing Stable's Harmless (Ricky Gonzalez, 118, 15-1); Tommy Town Thoroughbreds' Keeper Of the Stars (Abel Cedillo, 123, 7/2); Beau Recall (123, 3-1), and Jolie Olimpica (Mike Smith, 122, 5/2).

Keeper Ofthe Stars, a gray 4-year-old by Midnight Lute, has won seven of her 16 starts, including a smart score this past May 25 in the Grade I Gamely Stakes at Santa Anita. The Jonathan Wong trainee has won more than half a million dollars and has done well with rider Cedillo, her partner Saturday. They've rung up three stakes victories together, including that Gamely tally.

Lady Prancealot has chased home Keeper Of the Stars in her last two outings, but was a double stakes winner in her two starts before that. The Irish-bred filly runs out of the barn of trainer Richard Baltas and can brag of $565,841 in winnings so far. Like most in this field, she's shown a real affinity for the turf.

Bodhicitta rallied to take second in the aforementioned Gamely behind Keeper Ofthe Stars in her best effort to date. The rising 4-year-old by the British stallion Showcasing also comes out of the Baltas barn. She has put in a series of good works at Del Mar for her go in the distaff feature.

The Yellow Ribbon will be Race 9 on the 11-race Saturday program. Also on the card will be the Grade II, $150,000 Best Pal Stakes for 2-year-olds. First post on the afternoon will be 2 p.m.

The post Beau Recall Back To Defend Her Title In Del Mar’s Yellow Ribbon Handicap appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post